bull-dust

This is one of the few cases in my lifetime of a clear and obvious miscarriage of justice. Not just the one either, it’s a clear and persistent abuse of justice over a period of 5 years.

I’m talking of course about the David Hicks case, about which there has been much holding of heads in hands in the last 24 hours.

As I see it, this is what’s happened:

After Hicks spent 5 years in gaol without charge, the Australian public finally got angry enough to get Howard’s attention, at which point a hasty show trial was arranged with the rules clearly set against the defence. At the same time, Hicks’ lawyer, no dummy, played hard-ball with someone high up in the Bush administration and negotiated a 9 month sentence.

Whatever this is, it’s not justice.

If Hicks really is a terrorist and a risk to the community, then frankly he should be in gaol for a lot longer than 9 months. If he’s not, then he should never have been in gaol for 5 years without charge. If the “trial” was legitimate, then Mori should not have been allowed to go over their heads like he has. If Hicks has been treated decently and humanely, he should be able to speak to the public. If he wasn’t tortured or held illegally, why shouldn’t he be allowed to sue. What has the US got to fear? What is our government afraid of?

And hasn’t it worked out well for Howard? Hicks home, and no nasty details to embarass anyone in power.

The whole thing stinks. It stinks of corruption, political interference and lies. It’s not justice.

Rant over….

More on the RFTK
The official results are out (or should that be in?) and it turns out my time was even faster than I thought - 56:42. I have serious doubts about the length of the course, but even so, that’s a good time.

I’m more chuffed to see I came in number 200 (out of 18 thousand). For someone who still doesn’t really call myself a runner, that’s pretty good. At this rate, Messrs Troop et al will have me snapping at their heals sometime in the year 2039.

In the meantime, normal running training goes on, relentlessly. Yesterday a 12-ishk easy run, and today a 13k run including 3 sets of 7 minute tempo sessions.